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Some of you may recall the day your home or farm received electricity for the very first time. Others no doubt have heard stories about how work was done before the lights came on. How life-changing that moment must have been: to finally experience a world previously accessible only to "city folk." Only accessible to those who could bring profits to investor-owned utilities. Entire rural communities were forgotten and overlooked until a handful of farmers in 1937 said otherwise.

When severe storms and natural disasters cause power outages, it can be an inconvenience—or even a problem—to be without electricity. Purchasing a backup generator can help with preparation for such power outages and provide peace of mind. As with all things involving electricity, the incorrect use of generators can create potentially hazardous situations. Safe Electricity outlines essential considerations in purchasing the right generator and safely operate it.

Four local eighth graders are headed for a week of jam-packed summer fun at the YouthPower Energy Camp.

Bailey Lollis of Blanchard, Chyann Emerson of Tuttle, Kellen Driever of Noble, and Olivia Braley of Norman will represent OEC at this year's camp, to be held May 29-June 1 at Canyon Camp and Conference Center near Hinton.

OEC lineman Derec Janaway was selected to lead a team of eight volunteer linemen — including OEC District Lineman Brad Scott — to electrify remote communities in the northwestern part of Guatemala this coming fall. Janaway traveled to Bolivia in 2016 for a similar cause.

“Bringing electricity to areas that have none takes us back to our roots of rural electrification,” says Chris Meyers, Oklahoma Association of Electric Cooperatives (OAEC) general manager.

If you live in Norman and haven't met Phillip Miller or Jake Calvert, you must not be an OEC member.

Lifelong Norman residents Phillip and Jake take great pride in their work serving members who reside in Norman and parts of Noble. Together, they make sure the lights stay on for thousands of families and hundreds of businesses.

"I've been on a maintenance truck my entire career," Phillip said. "It's hard to imagine doing anything other than making sure the good people in our district are well cared for and their lights stay on."

The OEC Foundation, Inc. board of directors met March 15 and distributed over $42,500 to local nonprofit organizations and families in OEC's seven-county service area via Operation Round Up® (ORU). Transition House received the largest grant, valued at $10,000.

Following a lengthy process of feasibility studies, member surveys and research into fiber and broadband, OEC is set to kick off the first phase of OEC Fiber — a telecommunications subsidiary of OEC. This phase includes installing fiber communications to all substations located throughout our service area.

Did you know as an OEC member, you have been capitalizing on the benefits of solar power for the past year without the drawbacks of actual solar panels on your home and without a subscription fee? You might be surprised to learn that data collected from the first year of operation for the OEC Solar Garden shows it powered more homes than expected at a lower-than-anticipated cost.

This innovative approach to large-scale solar power has proven to be a win-win for OEC and its members.

Every year, we take the time to thank our extraordinary lineworkers who dedicate their lives to keeping the lights on in our local communities. Forty lineworkers maintain over 5,500 miles of line in OEC’s service territory, and without them, our world would be dark.

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Touchstone Energy® Cooperatives is a national network of electric cooperatives across 46 states that provides resources and leverages partnerships to help member cooperatives and their employees better engage and serve their members. By working together, Touchstone Energy® Cooperatives stand as a source of power and information to their 32 million member-owners every day.